Rolling Stone's 20 Best R&B Albums of 2014

FKA twigs’ first full-length album brims with spartan, icy songs that whisk between distorted R&B and ethereal pop. While twigs’ pristine vocals and sensual lyrics are the cornerstone, *LP1* showcases the kind of confident production and instrumentation that play easily alongside celebrated pop minimalists like James Blake. Album highlight “Pendulum\" sees FKA twigs dabbling in manipulated vocals, as wavering guitars and electric drums stutter-step intoxicatingly, while “Video Girl” finds her melodic falsetto fluttering over churning, wobbling synths and creaking percussion.

In 2014, Prince released two LPs simultaneously: the 3RDEYEGIRL collaboration *PLECTRUMELECTRUM* and this solo outing. Ostensibly a concept album about a man who wakes up 45 years in the future, *ART OFFICIAL AGE* is a sprawling, spacey R&B fantasia. While the techno beat and airhorns that adorn the playful “ART OFFICIAL CAGE” slyly wink at the era’s fascination with digital recording technology, the album is also a return to form: The slinky, funked-out stunner “CLOUDS” and the pop-ballad odyssey “BREAKDOWN” feel like classics from a bygone era.

Contemporary R&B is enjoying an embarrassment of riches, with innovative albums by FKA Twigs, Banks, and Kelela stretching the genre\'s boundaries. Tinashe\'s debut raises the bar yet again. Building on the momentum of the roiling summer jam \"2 On,\" *Aquarius* features a who\'s-who of names, from R&B iconoclasts like Blood Orange\'s Dev Hynes to bankable pop pros like Stargate. \"How Many Times\" is a throwback slow jam enlivened by Future\'s staccato vocals, while \"Pretend\" out-Drakes Drake with its liquid production and earworm hook. Tinashe remains the star of the show, cooing, rapping, and ruminating (via several interludes). It\'s one of the year\'s most adventurous pop records.

Mary J. Blige doesn’t fear new challenges. Over two decades, the GRAMMY®-winning R&B icon has shown herself to be a skilled collaborator who’s worked with artists and producers as disparate as Sean “Puffy” Combs, Chaka Khan, and Sting. For *The London Sessions*, Blige traveled to the U.K.\'s capital city in search of inspiration. What she found was a team of exciting young artists with roots in London’s vibrant dance music community. Written with and produced by the likes of Sam Smith, Disclosure, Jimmy Napes, Naughty Boy, and Emeli Sandé, the resulting album is one of Blige’s bravest and most refreshing releases to date.

Kelis offers a soulful collection of horn-accompanied retro R&B that’s conceptually united by her gastronomic passion. At a glance, the conceit might seem a bit tongue-in-cheek (particularly since her breakthrough came with 2003’s ultra-sassy “Milkshake”), but neither the music nor the inspiration for *Food* can be taken lightly: as a sideline to her singing career, the vocalist became a Le Cordon Bleu-trained saucier. When she digs in to smoldering downtempo tracks like “Floyd” or “Runnin’”—delivering coy lines like “I know that I don’t look it but I can cook” in her husky alto—*Food*’s insinuations and double entendres are at once playful and deeply satisfying. The success of the concept is also due in part to TV on the Radio\'s Dave Sitek, who’s production flourishes nod to Stax icons on heavy-hitting tunes like “Hooch” and “Rumble.”

Teyana Taylor\'s been flirting with her big break for years, releasing the single \"Google Me\" in 2008 and singing on a number of mentor Kanye West\'s tracks. She\'s officially arrived with her studio debut, *VII*. A sultry throwback to \'90s R&B with modern flourishes, the album highlights Taylor\'s powerhouse pipes, with skeletal tunes like \"Sorry\" and \"Request\" placing her vocals front and center. \"Just Different\" is a slinking slow jam. \"Maybe\" blends woozy atmospherics into the mix, and \"Put Your Love On\" toys with dancehall. Compared to the avant-garde R&B of 2014 breakouts like Tinashe and FKA Twigs, *VII* is more traditional, but it\'s no less compelling.

A slow-burning seduction from the start, Trey Songz’ sixth full-length album presents the prodigiously talented vocalist on a richly produced, hook-laden set of nocturnal R&B. On the club-ready opening track, “Cake,” he expresses his omnivorous interest for ladies through a playful metaphor, while candidly debauched slow-jams like “All We Do” and “Touchin, Lovin” cut right to the chase. On the latter tune, Songz sings one of his most spine-tingling hooks over a lurching beat and reconnects with *Passion, Pain & Pleasure* guest Nicki Minaj, whose lightning-fast verse offers a dozen brilliant and blush-inducing come-ons in 20 seconds. Among the steamy talk and big cameos (including Ty Dolla $ign, Juicy J, and Justin Bieber), Songz’ perceptive storytelling (most evident on the remorseful psychodrama of “SmartPhones”) adds thoughtful substance to his gracefully executed pillow talk.

August Alsina proves why he\'s one of the most exciting stars in contemporary R&B on this major-label debut. The New Orleans musician\'s talents are manifold, from his scuffed-up tenor to his slinking flow. Yet it\'s Alsina\'s ability to relate tales of his hardscrabble upbringing—\"I had to face it that my daddy was addicted,\" he sings on the opener, \"Testify\"—that distinguishes him from his peers. Though he\'s not averse to waxing romantic (\"Kissin on my Tattoos\"), it\'s tracks like \"Right There\" and \"Make It Home\" that tie Alsina to a legacy of down-on-their-luck crooners, even if his beats are fluttering contemporary trap-n-B. On \"Mama,\" Alsina sings proudly, \"I coulda been locked up/I coulda been gunned down/But I found my own way/I ain\'t gonna stop now.\"

*Beach House* takes all the darkest celebrations of trap rap—drugs, guns, sex—and filters them through the vulnerable croon of Ty Dolla $ign. The results are fantastic because of that juxtaposition. Even when Ty is exploring something sinister, his tone makes it impossible not to be drawn in. Produced by Ty’s constant partner DJ Mustard, “Paranoid” and “Or Nah” are no-brainers; with just the right mix of simplicity and eccentricity, these songs will still get play in 50 years. It\'s the slow, slippery “Work,” though, that is the album’s sleeper gem.

K. Michelle is primarily known as the star of the reality shows *Love & Hip-Hop* and *K. Michelle: My Life*, but that should change with the dazzling *Anybody Wanna Buy a Heart*, on which Michelle\'s talents as a vocalist far outshine her yen for stirring up drama. On the piano ballad \"How Do You Know?,\" her voice is a colossus coursing with emotion, while \"Going Under\" finds her having her way with vibrant pop R&B and \"God I Get It\" is a straight-up country song, right down to its pedal steel guitar. From the slinking electro of \"Love \'Em All\" to the classic quiet storm of \"Maybe I Should Call,\" *Heart* is immaculately executed.